Costa Rica Pig Farmers Denounce Anti-competitive Practices

In Costa Rica, the pig farmers’ association has filed a complaint alleging that importers such as Walmart, Cargill and Sigma Alimentos are manipulating pork prices in the local market.

The Costa Rican Chamber of Porculturists (Caporc) filed a complaint with the Consumer Protection and Advocacy Commission (Coprocom), arguing that “… three multinational companies make up 65% of total pork imports, and that this concentration demonstrates significant market power that undermines free competition and market transparency.”

From a statement by Caprocop:

The Costa Rican Chamber of Porculturists, which represents 14,000 producers, has filed a complaint with the Commission for Defense and Consumer Promotion (COPROCOM) over manipulation of market prices on the part of importers with the monopolistic power to do so.

According to Renato Alvarado, president of the Chamber “in the last six months we have seen an atypical behavior of imports, since they went from 6,000 metric tons a year to 8,000 metric tons in only the first half of the year. This behavior and the accumulation of inventories is causing a distortion of the internal market “.